So, living in a small town means when I’m in the ER which has it’s waiting room just inside the main entrance to the hospital, you get noticed. It’s hard to avoid.

Saturday morning I was working in the yard with people from the church cutting down a bunch of trees (happy Earth Day by the way) and felt pain shoot across my left ribcage. Earlier in the week at geezerball (basketball for the younger, previously in-shape male) and took a pretty serious shot to the ribs. The severity of the pain on Saturday morning told me that I needed to get it checked out.

So after lunch that’s what I went to do at the local ER. Which is located as described above.

I was recognized by a number of people as they passed in and out of hospital visiting friends or family. It was actually kind of nice as I ended up sitting there for 6 hours. Some company was appreciated.

It was also neat to be able to offer pastoral care for people as they waited or walked through. When you sit with people for a while, it opens doors for conversation, even if it is just small talk, or in the case of one family, a serious concern. So even as I sat there, it’s good to know God is still at work in unexpected places.